May is overflowing with new thinky games: here are our highlights

It’s May first! And you know how the saying goes: April showers bring May games-that-make-you-think. Really rolls off the tongue, doesn’t it?

This month truly is full to the brim with new releases that have caught our eye, many more than we could properly showcase in just one article. Throughout the month we’ll be keeping you informed about as many as we can, but for now, I’ve picked out a handful of significant happenings that the team and the community are excited about.

Right at the top of “highly anticipated games of 2024” is Animal Well. It’s a non-linear exploration focused puzzle-platformer, putting it somewhere in the “metroidvania” category. The game is just dripping with atmosphere, its green-blue-purple subterranean environments overgrown and foreboding, home to eerie statues and shrines, populated by mysterious creatures. The promise of using the tools and items you’ll acquire along the way in a multitude of creative ways, combined with the overall enigmatic look of the game and its puzzles, has many eagerly awaiting its release.

Animal Well releases May 9th on Steam, Nintendo Switch and Playstation 4/5. Keep your eye out for more coverage of this one on the site in the very near future…

Does Braid even need an introduction? A new Anniversary Edition of one of the most popular puzzle games of all time is releasing this month. Players will be able to re-visit all of the old painterly, time-reversing worlds with entirely new re-done visuals, as well as a brand new world filled with new puzzles and “redesigns of classics”. There’s a reason the original Braid cemented itself in the early-indie landscape of 2008, the game’s puzzles being as challenging and satisfying as its visual style is captivating.

Braid Anniversary Edition releases on Steam and Playstation on May 14th. It’s also worth noting that the mobile version of the game is exclusive to Netflix subscribers: if you already have Netflix, you can play for free on iOS and Android.

Lorelei and the Laser Eyes, the latest collaboration between developer Simogo and publisher Annapurna Interactive, looks delightfully cryptic. The game’s descriptions are intentionally vague and mysterious, the trailers fragmented and sinister. It does seem clear that a narrative mystery, strange symbols and various kinds of puzzles are all involved. From the game’s Steam page:

A woman, summoned by an eccentric man to participate in a project in an old hotel somewhere in central Europe, becomes embroiled in a game of illusions, increasingly dangerous and surreal.

What we’ve seen and heard so far is more than enough for me to want to jump in blind. Lorelei and the Laser Eyes releases on Steam on May 16th.

Ouros is different from the other games on this list in that it doesn’t have a huge publisher or marketing budget behind it, but the game deserves way more attention. This is a minimal, gentle and calm game about bending lines and curves into specific shapes. It’s always a joy to learn of a new puzzle game that is operating outside the confines of the square grids of tiles that are so ubiquitous. Everything in Ouros bends and flows seamlessly, and the soft color palette and soothing sounds mesh wonderfully with the mechanics. I had a chance to playtest a very early version of this game, and I’m so excited to see how far the production has come.

Ouros releases on Itch.io and Steam on May 22nd during the Cerebral Puzzle Showcase, with a demo available on Steam now. Speaking of the Showcase…

This is very much a “last but not least” entry on the list: the massive Steam sale all about thinky puzzles is back for a 3rd year running, taking place May 23rd – 30th. Each year a huge number of classic puzzle games, hidden gems and new releases are featured and discounted. In addition to Ouros I shared above, a whole list of games that have set their release dates during the Cerebral Puzzle Showcase this year, including Paper Trail, The Court of Wanderers, and Hackshot.

You’ll definitely see more info coming from us about these new releases around the time the Showcase kicks off, and you can visit the event’s website to sign up for their newsletter. It’s the ultimate finale for a month stuffed full of thinky games.